Welcome back to November Notes: A Month in the Trenches — my daily journal through the chaos and calm of work, motherhood, and finding fulfillment in the middle of it all.
After a little bit of a chaotic morning with the girls, we made it out of the house — success in itself. I handled drop-off today, and as we were heading out, I noticed our Halloween pumpkins still sitting outside.
They had been perfectly fine… until today. Thanks to the warmer weather, they had transformed into a moldy, fly-infested disaster. As I was trying to get us loaded up into the car (hands completely full, of course), I figured I’d just nudge the worst pumpkin toward the compost pile in our side yard with my foot.
Spoiler alert: it exploded. Flies everywhere. Pumpkin guts all over the yard.
Honestly, one of the perks of living in a neighborhood without an HOA is that I could have just left it and declared it a problem for future Rachel. But I knew it would only get worse. So, I grabbed the pitchfork, cleaned it up (laughing to myself, because what else can you do?), while the kids yelled from the car — one had apparently offended the other, and we’re still deep in the trenches of “how to disagree without screaming.”
Once we were finally in the car and moving, we did a little grounding exercise we’ve been using lately. It really helps when the emotional intensity is high:
Try this grounding practice with your kids:
- 3 deep breaths
- 3 things you can see
- 3 things you can hear
- 3 things you can smell
Does it take some convincing to get them started? Yes.
Does it usually help? Absolutely.
Work, Unexpected Meetings, and Costco Missions
I managed to get everyone dropped off, make it to work without any wrong turns (small win!), and read a little more of the book I mentioned earlier. It ended up being one of those days: meetings, surprises, and the usual work curveballs.
Lately, I’ve been reflecting more on my role — I’ve been in it about five months now. While a lot of it still feels familiar, there’s definitely a new layer of challenge and growth. Some days I feel confident, others not as much. But that’s part of the journey.
I recently had a conversation with my boss about the importance of taking time off. She reminded me that we can’t do our best work unless we rest — and that’s stuck with me. I’m 100% someone who uses all of my PTO and holidays, but I usually fill that time with school events, family errands, and activities. It’s a full life, and I love it — but it’s a lot.
About That Costco Run…
Yesterday, I had a plan: go to Costco during lunch and restock on essentials like cat food and laundry detergent. Since we started using Kroger delivery to cut down on store trips, we’ve been trying to limit Costco to once a month.
But we underestimated how much we rely on that weekly Costco baseline. I was almost out of everything.
I got called into an unexpected meeting during lunch, so I sent my boss a message and asked if I could leave a bit early. She said yes — and I’m so glad I asked. The roads were less crowded, the store was quiet, and I got everything we needed — plus a few early Christmas gifts (yes, they’re already out). I even made it back home to unload before heading to the softball fields.
It was one of those days where everything worked out just enough, even though it didn’t go according to plan.
A Reminder for All of Us in the Hustle
That little pivot in my day — asking for what I needed, choosing calm when I could — reminded me of something a mentor once told me:
Fulfilled Hustle Tip:
#thefulfilledhustle
Work-life balance doesn’t mean splitting your time 50/50. It means finding those windows of fulfillment within the hustle.
This blog exists because the hustle is real — especially if you’re parenting, working, caregiving, managing schedules, and trying to also be present.
Some days feel frantic. Others feel doable. The goal isn’t to eliminate the hustle — it’s to make sure we’re not filling every possible moment with more tasks when what we really need is a breath, a pause, a reset.
Today, that looked like cleaning up a pumpkin explosion while laughing, doing breathing exercises in the car, and buying early Christmas gifts next to the cat food aisle.
Here’s to finding those moments — and I’ll see you tomorrow.
R
Read Yesterday’s Post: Day 4: The Power of Transitions (and Pizza!)
Check out the next post in this series: Day 6: Juggling Softball, Work & Family with Grace and Grit
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